


Can We Pretend this Never Happened?

by moosh



Series: Pepperony Teen Pregnancy/Adoption AU where Peter is their kid [1]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, F/M, Gen, Howard Stark's A+ Parenting, Peter Parker is Pepper Potts's Biological Child, Peter Parker is Tony Stark's Biological Child
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-21
Updated: 2020-06-21
Packaged: 2021-03-03 20:34:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,145
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24831679
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moosh/pseuds/moosh
Summary: Just a short little fic for Pepperony Week 2020 about Tony & Pepper having Peter when they were 16.
Relationships: Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Series: Pepperony Teen Pregnancy/Adoption AU where Peter is their kid [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1815835
Comments: 17
Kudos: 209





	Can We Pretend this Never Happened?

**Author's Note:**

> Pepperony Week 2020, Day #1 - High School/College AU. Shout-out to the fine folks at DailyPepperony on tumblr for organizing this yet again.

Tony sat with his arms crossed over his chest staring straight down at the floor. The room was mostly dark so that Pepper could get some rest, but there was bright light flooding in from under the door. His father was pacing just outside though, which made the light blink on the shiny tile. His eyes focused on the changing light in the room as his mind wandered, and he just desperately wanted this to be over with. He didn’t want to dwell, it was too hard. He just wanted to move on and do his best to pretend that none of this had ever happened.

He spaced out, just watching the shadows from his father’s pacing back and forth, but suddenly the door swung open and the lights turned on, illuminated the stark hospital room. His father was the first in, followed by his lawyer, Mark, and then Pepper’s mother. Pepper shot right up and then winced a bit in pain before settling back against the bed. Tony rushed to her side and grabbed her hand.

“You ok?” He asked softly while keeping his eyes on the three adults in the room, almost protecting her from them.

“Yeah.” She answered as she grabbed her plastic cup of water.

“Can’t this wait? She’s exhausted.” Tony asked as he turned to look up at his father.

“No, it can’t. The parents are here and they want their son and I want all of this to be over and done with as soon as possible.” Howard replied sternly, his voice full of disdain. “Mark has a few things for you guys to sign and then it’ll be done.”

“And then we get our money, right?” Pepper’s mother, Cindy, asked while digging through her purse.

Tony couldn’t decide whose family had been more of a nightmare during this whole situation. On the one hand he had his parents, who’d always disliked Pepper and who couldn’t believe that he’d _knocked up that piece of trailer trash out of wedlock_ . And then on the other there was Cindy, who’d also gotten pregnant at 16 and spent the whole pregnancy telling Pepper that she should have just _gotten rid of it like I should have done._ She only really changed her tune once she realized that the adoptive parents were willing to pay and that Tony wanted Pepper to have all of the money.

“Yes, the money will be deposited into an account for Pepper’s college.” Mark reminder her, which was something that Tony had insisted on. He knew that if given the chance Cindy would take it all, so he did what he could to make sure that the money went to Pepper.

“Yeah yeah.” Cindy sighed as he pulled out a pack of Pall Malls and lighter.

“Mom! You can’t smoke in here!” Pepper spat at her. “Just...just give us the papers to sign. I just want to sleep.”

Tony took the stack of documents from Mark, but instead of flipping to the flagged bits he started reading, much to Howard’s chagrin.

“Tony! Just sign the damn thing!” Howard practically yelled, which made Tony flinch.

“Can I read it first?”

“No, nothing has changed since we last talked about it. Just sign it. Both of you.” He said, holding out a pen.

Tony clenched his jaw as he took the pen and quickly flipped to the pages he had to sign. When he was done he spread them out on the tray table for Pepper and soon enough it was done. He was no longer theirs. Richard and Mary Parker were now his parents, and even though he knew they’d be good parents and even though he knew that everyone had agreed that this would be the best thing to do, it still stung. He was literally giving a piece of himself away, and as he locked eyes with Pepper he knew that she was feeling the same thing.

They’d known each other for a little over 2 years and been officially dating for roughly half of that. Tony had been kicked out of his prep school for accidentally burning down a building, so as punishment Howard sent him to the local public high school. He met Pepper when they were paired together for a project and they quickly became friends. It started off with months of them not sure what to make of each other, though they obviously clicked. Then they spent a few months having very obvious crushes until Pepper finally kissed him at the Homecoming dance their sophomore year. And now, half-way through their junior year, they were parents.

Well, not anymore.

Once the paperwork was signed Cindy quickly dashed out of the room, desperate for a cigarette and bitching about being late for work because of this. Mark quickly followed so that he could find the Parkers, and Howard just stood, peering down at them. Tony was looking at him almost defiantly as he held Pepper’s hand, just waiting for him to say something.

“Are you coming home?” Howard finally asked.

Tony almost laughed. “No, I’m staying right here. With her.”

“You should be at _Harvard_ right now, not stuck with some tramp who tried to trap you with a baby.”

Pepper’s grip on Tony’s hand immediately tightened as she tried to keep him calm, but all that Tony wanted to do was jump up and attack. He was bigger and stronger than Howard now so he didn’t really have to take this shit, but this also wasn’t the time or place for a brawl. Plus he was just trying to push his buttons. Yes, if Pepper hadn’t gotten pregnant he’d be at Harvard right now, but he’d decided to hold off for another year so that he could be here when the baby came. He was only 16, Harvard could wait. So instead of lashing out, he just said nothing. He gave Pepper’s hand a squeeze, letting her know that he was OK, and eventually Howard just threw his hands up and left.

“I’m sorry.” Tony said as soon as he was gone.

“Don’t be, it’s certainly not the worst thing he’s said about me.” Pepper said as she shifted a bit to get more comfortable, which just made Tony feel worse.

“Still. Just like. You know none of that is true? What he said? I want to be here, I want to be here with you. There’s nowhere else I’d rather be.”

“I know and I love you.” She replied quietly before a silence fell over them for a while, neither sure what they were supposed to do or say now. “Did you see them?”

“Who?”

“The Parkers? They’re here, right? Did you see them?”

“No. Do you - do you want to see them? I’m sure I could find them.”

“No.” Pepper said quickly.

“Ok, ok. No problem. It’s late, let’s just try to sleep. Lay down.” He suggested as he tucked a few loose strands of hair behind her ear. He kicked his shoes off as he crawled into the bed, and once he was settled he pulled her down so that her head was resting on his chest. He started running his hand up and down her arm, just wanting her to relax. Soon he became aware that she was crying, so he just held her closer and let her cry. “Shh, Pep. It’s ok, he’ll be ok. We’re doing the right thing. He’ll - you know, he’ll be raised by people who love him and will take care of him. And we’ll _both_ get to go to college, ok? It’s ok, it’s ok.” He said, not sure if it would help. He didn’t know what to say to make it better, and honestly he felt like crying himself. He just held her close though and let her cry until they both fell asleep.

Tony woke up early the next morning as the first rays of sun poured through the window. Pepper was sound asleep against him and he really didn’t want to move, but he also _really_ had to pee. He slowly untangled himself from her and stood up. She stirred a bit and rubbed her eyes as they fluttered open. “Hey. Morning, beautiful. Sorry to wake you up but I didn’t want to wet the bed.” He joked, flashing her a big smile.

“Mmm can you get me some water?” She asked as she cuddled back up.

“Yeah, hang tight.” He said. He quickly dipped into the bathroom to pee and splash some water on his face before grabbing her pitcher and refilling her glass. “You feel ok? Any pain or anything.”

“No, I’m all right.”

“Ok. I’m uh, I’m gonna run to the vending machines, all right? Do you want anything?”

“No.”

“I’ll be back soon, don’t go anywhere.” He teased as he pulled his shoes on and dug around in his backpack for some money.

He never made it to the vending machines though. He hadn’t even really intended on going there unless Pepper needed something. Instead he found himself peering into the nursery at his son. _Baby Boy Parker_ , as it said on the card. He looked around to make sure he was alone before he pulled put the disposable camera he’d bought at the gift shop. He wasn’t supposed to see the baby, and no one was supposed to know that he was the father. Howard had said he wanted it kept a secret for safety reasons, but Tony couldn’t help but feel that he was embarrassed. He didn’t care though, he needed to see him.

He snapped a few photos of the sleeping, angelic baby, and then just stood there for a few moments, looking at him. Tony was just a kid himself and had no idea how to raise a kid, nor did he really want to try right now. He wanted to go to school, he wanted Pepper to go to school, and he just wanted to be a kid himself for a while longer. Yes, they’d made a mistake. It was an accident, really. The condom broke and they didn’t realize until they were done. And they’d talked through all of their options and decided to give the baby up for adoption even before they told their parents, but it was still hard. Harder than he ever thought it would be.

He wasn’t sure how long he’d been standing there before the hallway started to fill with people, pulling him from his thoughts. He quickly tucked the camera away and turned to head back to Pepper, but that’s when he saw them. The Parkers. He’d met them a handful of times before, and they all froze when they saw each other. Tony took a deep breath and walked right to them.

“Hey guys.” Tony said, holding his hand out to shake.

“Hi, Tony. How’s Pepper?” Mary asked cautiously, unsure what to even say.

“Oh, she’s fine. We’re fine.” Tony answered, trying to work up the nerve to say what he wanted to. “Look, I know that I’m not supposed to be here. I’m not supposed to have any contact with you guys or with him now, which is fine. Really. No one is supposed to know who his parents are, which is also fine. But just. If you guys ever need _anything_ , just ask. Ask _me._ I know who you are, I know you can find me. If he, you know, breaks his leg and you need to pay for the cast. Or if he decides to start playing the cello and you can’t afford to buy him one. Or just...anything. If you ever need anything, just ask. I’ll make it happen.”

Richard and Mary both looked a bit taken aback, but they both nodded. “He’ll be fine, Tony. We’ll take care of him.”

“I know, but the offer still stands, all right?”

“Thank you.” Richard said, giving him a smile.

“Ok. Well...well I have to get back to Pepper. Uh. Ya know just…” Tony trailed off, unsure what to say now. “Pepper’s allergic to strawberries and so is her mom. So keep an eye on that.”

“We will. Go on, go be with her.” Richard said, shaking his hand again.

Tony nodded before walking past them to get back to Pepper’s room, but stopped and called out to him once more. “Hey, um, one last question.”

They both turned to look at him, ready to answer whatever he asked.

“What’s his name?”

Mary just smiled. “Peter. Peter Benjamin Parker.”

“Peter? I like it.” He smiled as he finally walked away, eager to get back to Pepper and working on getting back to a normal life. He wasn’t going to interfere with the Parkers’ lives or keep tabs on them, but he just hoped that Peter would be happy and hoped that maybe someday their paths would cross again.


End file.
